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Dental Care for Pets

Dental Care for Pets in the Okanagan Valley

At Lakeshore Animal Clinic, we believe that oral health care is a very important aspect in caring for your pet. Like people, animals benefit from having good oral hygiene. We can guide you to the appropriate diet for your pet, as well as what you can do at home to take care of your pet’s teeth.

Many people will notice their pets have bad breath, which is caused from a build-up of plaque and tartar. When the film of plaque builds up enough, it will form a hard brown coating on the teeth called tartar. If left untreated, excessive plaque and tartar can lead to gum disease, heart problems and other infections throughout the body.

We have an ultrasonic scaler and specialized dental instruments to clean your pet’s teeth while they are under anaesthetic, so that we can safely and effectively remove any plaque and tartar on the teeth and under the gum line. Our veterinarians and technicians have up-to-date education on proper dental cleaning and tooth extractions. Our digital dental X-ray machine allows us to evaluate the healthiness of the teeth right down to the root level. This helps us decide which teeth are healthy and which teeth will have to be removed.

The plaque and tarter that you can see on the teeth of your pet is actually only 50% of the real problem; bacteria and plaque can also build up under the gum line. In order to remove this, we use a special tool that will not damage the gums or the tooth. This can only be properly and painlessly done when your pet is under anesthetic.

In recent years, people have been opting for the “no anaesthetic teeth cleaning” procedure. This is a dangerous task; in order to remove all plaque and tartar, your pet must sit extremely still so the gums are not injured. Additionally, this type of scaling does not clean below the gum line adequately. Having your pet's teeth professionally cleaned while they are under an anaesthetic is a good preventative measure to ensure your pet lives a full, happy life and you can enjoy your “face” time together!

Picture 1 shows a healthy tooth with healthy roots; picture 2 shows a tooth with one damaged root. This tooth was painful for the animal and would have caused an abscess; it had to be extracted for the benefit of the animal.